The Pagan Teaching of Sacred Secular Divide

I grew up in an Anglican church, and was brought up with the mindset that everything of the world is worldly and that Christians should have no part in it. I believed in the mindset that serving God full-time is the highest calling one can obtain, and that having a job in the marketplace was considered second-class. But, as I began to study the word of God, I realised that Paul was both a tent maker and an effective preacher. The more I read, the more convinced I became. I think the important thing here is to note that many believers are still holding on to this wrong mindset for the longest time, and they refuses to adopt a biblical worldview that calls us to be relevant to society. This is a mindset influenced by pagan philosophers! It is dangerous to subscribe to such beliefs without a clear and balanced interpretation of the word of God.

"As the church grew and extended its borders outside Jerusalem believers became influenced by a wide array of philosophies. The purity and power of the message were affected by the dominant culture, which became the Greek culture. The time following the two major Jewish revolts of AD 70 and AD 135 saw a Greek, man-centered view of the world reshape the church. Early Greek scholars like Plato introduced dualism, which says that life is divided into two compartments: the spiritual or eternal, and the temporal realm of the physical. Plato's dualism entered the church through many of the church fathers that were Greek philosophers who had converted to Christianity. They attempted to reconcile Greek thought with Christianity."
Quoted from http://www.intheworkplace.com/apps/articles/?articleid=13265&columnid=1935

I will reflect based on lessons learnt from the Cultural Mandate while in School of Theology. The Scriptures instructs us that we are "in the world" but not "of the world". This means that we are to remain in this social order of this world, but warns us to not adopt the values of this world - the evilness, the pagan mindset and products of human nature. There are distinct differences in the use of the word "world" in all these verses when we study the original Greek words, which are often neglected by the religious believers. However, I will not take time to go into that. Let us see what Jesus prayed in John 17:15-18 (NKJV): I do not pray that You should take them out of the world, but that You should keep them from the evil one. They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. Sanctify them by Your truth. Your Word is truth. As You sent Me into the world, I also have sent them into the world. 

Jesus did not pray that believers should be removed from the world (social order), but rather He sent us into the world - to change it, to transform it, and to redeem it. When we make a decision not to engage the world, we are walking in direct defiance to God. This is also where I wish to introduce the flawed argument that God calls a Church only to either fruitfulness or faithfulness, and not both. The logic is really simple. When we are truly faithful to God, we will decide to become fruitful. This fruitfulness is more than just having the fruits of the Spirit, but is to become fishers of men. Jesus did not stay in the temple all day to pray, but was out there in the marketplace, where the hurtful and broken were. He was living out God's heart.

I also learnt that work is not a product of sin. Adam was given work to do in the Garden of Eden. Work is something that is sacred. It is a demonstration of our service towards God. There is a difference between a job and ministry. A job is a means to earn money. But a ministry is a place where God leads you to and you bring the presence of God into. When we take the anointing of God into our job, it becomes a ministry.

Let me now introduce the Misery Comfort Scale of Prisoners of War:
Level 1: Resignation - Give up and die with dignity
Level 2: Survival - Even though the war may not be won, they can improve their living condition on their own
Level 3: Limited Change - Longer exercise time, larger quantity of bread and water
Level 4: Fortification - Quiet secure weapon and secret training, believing they can overtake the camp and prevent the enemies from coming back.
Level 5: Liberate Others - Liberate their own POW camp and other camps, with the objective to free every camp into victory.

Let us now draw it into context with the current churches:
Level 1: There is no hope for change in the world. Church against the world, and the world against the Church.
Level 2: Let me earn sufficient money to survive with my family
Level 3: There will be limited change happening in the world, do the best I can.
Level 4: Decide to take over demonic stronghold. Members stay away from the world and don't engage it, for fear of contamination. The Church builds four walls around it and become critical, judgemental and gatekeepers of the Kingdom.
Level 5: Disciple all members and equip them with the word of God. Set prisoners free with the Gospel of Christ. Recognise that the harvest field is the marketplace. Allow the Gospel to be preached in to all the world (all the social orders).

We must not buy in to the sacred secular divide. This is the time for harvest. We mustn't be passive, but active. We cannot hold back now, we have to stand strong. We have to influence and change our world for Jesus Christ.